Article carrier



P. L. GARLAND, JR

ARTICLE CARRIER Oct. 6, 1964 Filed Nov. 9, 1962 United States Patent 3,151,792 ARTICLE CARRIER Philip L. Garland, Jr., Princeton, N.J., assignor to Avisun Corporation, Philadelphia, Pa., a corporation of Delaware Filed Nov. 9, 1962, Ser. No. 236,653 3 Claims. (Cl. 224-45) This invention relates to detachable article carriers.

A primary object of this invention is the provision of an improved carrier which permits easy article insertion and withdrawal and in which an article to be carried is automatically cradled against movement.

A further object of this invention is the provision of a detachable article carrier which is simple in construction and use and which can be fabricated at low costs.

Still further objects will appear from the following description.

The carrier of the present invention which achieves these objects includes, broadly, an article supporting base or frame having an upstanding peripheral flange, an inverted U-shaped handle which is pivotally connected to the frame and an article embracing U-shaped bracket or member which extends laterally from the handle at substantially right angles to the plane thereof. The handle is pivotally connected to the frame at opposing points located to one side of a plane which extends across the frame and passes through the center of gravity thereof, while the U-shaped bracket or member projects toward and beyond such plane. With this arrangement, movement of the handle in the direction of its laterally projecting U-shaped bracket provides suflicient clearance so as to permit an article to be easily inserted into or withdrawn from the supporting frame.

In use, an article to be carried is disposed on the supporting frame after which the handle is moved to a vertical position. As the carrier is elevated, the tendency for the supporting frame to rotate or tilt relative to the handle causes the article to be urged snugly against and be cradled by the handle bracket. The bracket, however, extends at substantially right angles to the plane of the vertically disposed handle and thus tends to urge the article so that its center of gravity will be aligned with the pivot axis of the handle. Any tendency for the article to be displaced from the supporting frame under these forces is prevented by its upstanding peripheral flange so that the article remains snugly embraced by the different elements of the carrier.

The carrier of the present invention may be employed for transporting a variety of different articles or containers. However, for the sake of simplicity and ease of description, the carrier is hereafter described as employed with a conventional wax coated paper milk carton. Further, while the carrier of the present invention may be made from a variety of materials, plastic materials, such as polypropylene and polyethylene are preferred from the standpoint of their chemically inert characteristics, economy and ease of fabrication.

In the drawing, FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of the carrier of the present invention; and

FIGURE 2 is a fragmentary side view of a portion of the apparatus shown in FIGURE 1.

As illustrated in the drawing, the article carrier of the present invention includes an article supporting base or frame 11 having an upstanding peripheral flange 13, an inverted U-shaped handle 15 having a bight position and a pair of arms which are pivoted to the flange 13 by pins 17, and a U-shaped bracket or member 19 extending laterally from the handle 15 at substantially right angles "ice to the plane thereof. The supporting frame 11 corresponds generally with the cross-sectional configuration of the article to be carried, as for example a filled milk carton as indicated at 21 by broken lines, and may be perforated as shown at 23 to minimize the carrier weight. To insert or withdraw a carton 21 from the carrier, the handle 15 is merely rotated in the direction of its projecting bracket 19, as indicated by the arrow 25, to thereby provide unobstructed passage for such carton.

As best shown in FIGURE 2, the handle 15 is pivoted to the frame 11 in off-center relationship; that is, to one side of a plane extending across the frame 11 and passing through the center of gravity thereof, which is indicated by the arrow 27. With this arrangement, the frame 11, as viewed in both FIGURES 1 and 2, has a tendency to tilt or rotate in a counter-clockwise direction when the carrier is elevated. This tilting tendency of the supporting frame 11 causes the carton 21 to firmly engage with the U-shaped bracket 19. This bracket 19, however, extends at substantially right angles to the plane of the handle 15 which, during use of the carrier, is in a vertical plane. The bracket 19 thus tends to tilt or rotate the carton 21 in a clockwise direction, as viewed in FIGURE 1, in an attempt to urge the center of gravity thereof toward and over the pivot axis of the handle 15. As a result of the counteracting forces exerted, the carton 21 is automatically cradled by the handle bracket 19 as the carrier is elevated and is maintained in such snug cradled position during transit. The upstanding peripheral flange 13, of course, prevents any tendency for the carton 21 to be displaced from the frame 11 and may be provided with a still further projecting portion 29 to insure that carton tilting is avoided.

It is to be understood that changes and variations may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A detachable article carrier which includes an article supporting frame, an inverted U-shaped handle having a pair of arms and a connecting bight portion, the free ends of said arms being pivotally connected to said frame at opposing points located to one side of a plane which extends across said frame and passes through the center of gravity thereof, means located between the bight portion of said handle and the free ends of said arms for cradling an article disposed on said supporting frame when the carrier is elevated, and means on said supporting frame against which an article may abut during the cradling thereof.

2. A detachable article carrier which includes an article supporting frame having an upwardly extending peripheral flange, an inverted U-shaped handle having a pair of arms and a connecting bight portion, the free ends of said arms being pivotally connected to the flange of said frame at opposing points located to one side of a plane which extends across said frame and passes through the center of gravity thereof, and a U-shaped member located between the bight portion and the free ends of said handle and extending laterally therefrom for cradling an article disposed on said frame when the carrier is elevated.

3. A detachable carrier for milk containers which includes a rectangular article supporting frame having an upwardly extending peripheral flange, an inverted U-shaped handle having a bight portion and a pair of arms, the free ends of said arms being pivotally connected to the flange of said frame at opposing points located to one side of a plane which extends across said frame and References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Austin Aug. 28, 1906 Longaker May 10, 1932 Burt Apr. 30, 1957 Nelson Mar. 3, 1959 Kasper et al. Oct. 2, 1962 

1. A DETACHABLE ARTICLE CARRIER WHICH INCLUDES AN ARTICLE SUPPORTING FRAME, AN INVERTED U-SHAPED HANDLE HAVING A PAIR OF ARMS AND A CONNECTING BIGHT PORTION, THE FREE ENDS OF SAID ARMS BEING PIVOTALLY CONNECTED TO SAID FRAME AT OPPOSING POINTS LOCATED TO ONE SIDE OF A PLANE WHICH EXTENDS ACROSS SAID FRAME AND PASSES THROUGH THE CENTER OF GRAVITY THEREOF, MEANS LOCATED BETWEEN THE BRIGHT PORTION OF SAID HANDLE AND THE FREE ENDS OF SAID ARMS FOR CRADLING AN ARTICLE DISPOSED ON SAID SUPPORTING FRAME WHEN THE CARRIER IS ELEVATED, AND MEANS ON SAID SUPPORTING 